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IT hiring, projects in metro Detroit to continue through 2014, survey finds

Chief information officers in the Detroit area are more bullish on hiring now than they were six months ago.

At the end of 2013, in a poll by Robert Half Technology, a worldwide provider of technology professionals, 12 percent of area CIOs said they planned to hire IT staff, 17 percent said they planned to put IT hiring on hold and 3 percent said they planned to reduce their staff.

In a survey by Robert Half that was released this morning, 15 percent now say they plan to add to their IT teams between now and the end of the year, only 10 percent plan to put IT hiring on hold and 0 percent are planning to reduce their IT staffing.

Seventy-eight percent of CIOs also said they are confident their firms will invest in IT projects in the second half of 2014. This compares to 76 percent in the first six months of the year.

Ninety-four percent of CIOs reported being somewhat or very confident in their companies’ prospects for growth in the second half of the year, compared to 92 percent in the first half.

According to Jeremy Brodsky, Robert Half’s Detroit branch manager, development of mobile applications remains one of the main drivers behind IT hiring.

“In addition to full-time hires, we're seeing increased contract-to-hire and project-based roles on both the infrastructure and development sides,” he said in a news release.

Fifty-three percent of metro Detroit CIOs said it is somewhat or very challenging to find skilled IT professionals today.

The survey of 100 area CIOs was conducted by an independent research firm.